Clem Bastow reads her piece about borrowing teen magazines from the library.

As a kid, Clem couldn’t afford the monthly price of Girlfriend Magazine, or Seventeen, or my personal favourite, Dolly. So the library became her gateway to fashion trends, makeup advice, and the hottest Home and Away stars. 

As Clem got older and earned her own money, her relationship to libraries evolved. In her piece, Clem writes about class and shame, teen magazines and hope, and the always alluring sealed section.

Clem’s article Library learning with ‘Dolly’ was written for The Saturday Paper.

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Guest: Writer and critic, Clem Bastow

Background reading: Library learning with ‘Dolly’